Civil Society News

Mahallae meets public in a Meet-Up Event on Jan 23

As it nears its full launch date, Mahallae, the pioneering online platform for civic engagement, is organizing a series of events that will take place in the Buffer Zone. First in a series of events, Mahallae will be introduced to the public during a meet-up event on January 23, 2014 at the Home for Cooperation and CCMC will be there showcasing their work as well! During the event, guests will have the opportunity to interact with the creative teams, whose efforts are hosted on the platform. The event is designed to not only give the public a chance to learn more about the platform but also to test various interactive tools which combine technology with civic engagement. Speaking about the series of events, members of the Mahallae team Mehmet Erdoğan and Ellada Evangelou expressed their excitement for this project. “We are excited to have the opportunity to present the public with another taste of the Mahallae platform”, said Mehmet, to which Ellada added “The final platform will not only incorporate interactive tools such as games, videos and apps, but also it will be a space for inter-regional civil society collaborations to take place as well.”

Idea-sourcing Workshop takes place on Jan 24

During a workshop later in the week, the creative team behind Mahallae will help participants come up with innovative ideas for the Mahallae Challenges that will be announced in March of this year, by taking them through a process of facilitated brainstorming. With five hands-on activities, the workshop will give participants tools to help think outside the box and find creative solutions that use technology for social change. Participants are also given a chance come up with concrete ideas that they may later use to submit to the Challenge when it is officially announced.

In early 2014, Mahallae will launch its first Challenge, inviting social innovators to come up with innovative ideas to tackle challenges in different areas relating to social cohesion and reconciliation. Winning ideas will receive grants to be developed into projects.

The workshop will take place at Home For Cooperation, between 9:30 and 14:00.

Short film screening by ICFFCY

On 26th June at 7:30pm, ICFFCY is screening 3 short films: Drawing a smile (2009), The fish has flown away (2012) (both made by ICFFCY Youth team), and “Tokka" ( 2013) The CAT documentary. After the screening of these three unique films which will take place at CCMC, the attendees will be able to share a drink and meet the young film makers, Pavlos Christou, Mehmet Sah, Robyn De Jagger and their team. For more information, please check out the event description here.

KISA Workshops on Cyprus and EU!

KISA is organising two workshops as part of the project “Integration Programmes for Third-Country Nationals and Local Authorities”. The workshops are co-funded by the European Integration Fund and the Government of Cyprus, Ministry of Interior and the Municipality of Nicosia is the coordinator of the project. The workshops plan to cover two subjects; History and Culture of Cyprus and Cyprus and the European Union. The workshops are addressed to migrants and students from third countries and will be conducted in English at KISA’s premises.They aim at informing participants and providing them with a compact overview of Cyprus, its history and culture, an overview of structures and institutions of Cyprus and the EU, how EU has developed, its major decision-making structures and bodies.

It is hoped that the workshops will contribute to the integration of migrants, an objective that KISA has been working towards for a long time now. So, if you are a third-country migrant/student (sorry, the programme does not include refugees or asylum seekers) with regular visa and other papers, you are invited to take part to the workshops, which also include visits to museums and other places of interest.The workshops are to be implemented in June but please contact KISA in order to arrange the best possible days for most. For participation in the workshops, please write and email to info@kisa.org.cy, or call (+357) 22878181 or (+357) 99338014).

Global Education training with CYINDEP

The Cyprus Islandwide NGO Development Platform CYINDEP invites you to participate in a training session on Global Education on Tuesday 26 February (15:00 - 18:00) and Wednesday 27 February (15:00 - 18:00) at the Home for Cooperation, Ledra Palace buffer zone. Check out the invitation and more information on the training content here and register online here.

The Turkish Cypriot Association of University Women and The Costas and Rita Severis Foundation cordially invite you to a lecture by Art Historian and Executive Manager of the Costas and Rita Severis Foundation's Dr Rita C. Severis: Travelling Artists in Cyprus 1700-1960. On Wednesday, 19 December 2012 at 7.00pm at the Ataturk Cultural Centre, Nicosia. The lecture will be delivered in English with simultaneous translation in Turkish. Cocktails will follow. For Information: 00905428635676. Download the full invitation here.